New Ridge Racer Announced for Mobile, But No New Titles Scheduled for Consoles or PC

Bandai Namco has taken to YouTube to announce the newest Ridge Racer game, titled Ridge Racer Draw & Drift. The name stems from the game’s key features: you ‘draw’ your trajectory on the course, and then drift along it as you drive. The game will release on Android and iOS, and it follows Ridge Racer Slipstream, the last entry in the series, which was also released for mobile devices in 2013.

A number of comments on the YouTube page express disappointment with the game being a mobile title. This is perhaps not so unusual, considering Ridge Racer is a console-based property making its way to mobile. What is unusual, however, is that Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe has taken to responding to the comments.

Bandai Namco has responded to two comments from users asking for a console Ridge Racer game by saying “…as of today we have no PC or Console Ridge Racer game scheduled”. Of course, the wording here is careful: no games “scheduled” for PC and consoles need not mean that there are no games under development at all.

Bandai Namco’s responses don’t stop there, though. One user, 6utS, warned the company not to be a “2nd konami” or it will die like them. Bandai Namco responded with “We will be careful, thanks for the warning”. User Ian Khoo, asking “Who the hell thought this was a good idea” got the response that Bandai Namco will not be giving any names. The account also surveyed commenters for feedback, asking them what they don’t like about the game.

Perhaps the best exchange is with user Dastukiim, who commented simply “Nope”, to which Bandai Namco replied, “ok”.

Ridge Racer Draw & Drift does not presently have a release date, but it will be “coming soon”, and will be free to play.